Agricultural & Rural
- Agricultural & Rural
- Team
- Publications
- Links
- FAQs
Many pitfalls and complications can arise in dealing with farms or rural properties. Our lawyers have the expertise and industry knowledge to guide you
through the many day to day and strategic issues which you will have to navigate as a farmer, business owner or landowner in the agricultural or rural
sector.
Farming and Agribusiness
We can advise you in relation to:
- Buying and selling farms and farming properties, including sugarcane, cattle (beef and dairy), grains, cotton, small crops, etc.
- Preparing Share Farming Arrangements
- Preparing Partnership Agreements
- Preparing Joint Venture Agreements
- Preparing Shareholders Agreements
- Leasing your farm or farming equipment
- Business Structuring
- Asset Protection
- Sale and purchase of livestock, permits and machinery associated with the change of ownership of pastoral land
- The Personal Property Securities Regime
- Workplace health and safety issues, including advice on procedural issues pursuant to the Work Health and Safety Act
- Employment law issues such as salary and wage negotiations, enterprise bargaining, employment contracts and working with contractors and subcontractors
- Industrial Relations issues including termination issues and unfair dismissal claims
- Disputes and court cases including liability claims such as WorkCover claims, disputes with contractors and debt collection
- Environmental Law issues, for example licensing issues with the Environmental Protection Act
- Succession planning and intergenerational farm transfers
- Will/s & Estate Planning
- Family Law Matters
- Establishing a Self Managed Superannuation Fund
Rural land
We offer expert advice relating to:
- Rural residential and non-residential subdivisions
- Land titling issues, both freehold land and crown leasehold land
- Applications to government departments to convert crown leasehold land into freehold land
- Procedural issues under the Water Act and regulations, including transferring water licences/allocations, subdividing parts of water allocations and disputes regarding water licences/allocations with third parties and government agencies
- Resumption disputes (such as those under the Acquisition of Land Act) by local governments and government owned corporations
- Mining exploration permits and the implication of those permits pursuant to the Mineral Resources Act and related regulations
We are local lawyers, with long standing links to the rural and farming communities and we understand the pressures that you are faced with. Contact us today for more information on how we can help you.
Asset Protection...Client Guide
Asset protection is about reviewing the way you carry on your business, trade or profession, how you own your private and business assets and how to ensure that if the worst occurs, you do not lose everything you have worked so hard to create. Our client guide will help you understand how you can protect your assets.
Wills & Powers of Attorney...Client Guide
A Will is the cornerstone of an effective transfer of assets on death - it puts you in charge of important decisions now about what you want to happen to your affairs after you die. Our client guide will help you understand everything you need to know about making a Will or a Power of Attorney.
-
Squatters! Recent real life examples of how squatters can take over your property
25-Jun-2020
Two recent cases in the media involving squatters have demonstrated how things can go wrong when you don’t take the proper steps to protect your property rights. Powell v. Thorne The first involved a cattle grazier (Mr Powell) who owned 400 hectares, west of Brisbane. Mr Powell d..
-
Ban Order by Government on live cattle exports in 2011 found to be invalid
16-Jun-2020
On 2 June, the Federal Court found that the Commonwealth Government was liable to pay compensation to Brett Cattle Company Pty Ltd and others for the unlawful Ban Order placed on live cattle exports to Indonesia in 2011. The Ban Order was made under the Export Control Act 1982 (Cth) which ga..
-
Fire Affected Farmers Eligible for Assistance
10-Dec-2018
The Department of Agriculture and Fisheries (“DAF”) and Queensland Rural and Industry Development Authority (“QRIDA”) have announced assistance packages for those Primary Producers affected from the recent fires that occurred between 30 November to 6 December in our region. These Primary Pr..
-
Succession Planning: Part Four – Becoming partners on the family farm
10-Oct-2018
Last month we discussed the vendor financing option for those farmers transferring their farms onto their children and allowing their children to pay off the price over time. If a straight up sale doesn’t suit your family, another option is to have the younger generation gradually buy-in an..
-
Succession Planning for Farmers: Part Three – Your children paying the purchase price off by Vendor Financing
28-Aug-2018
Earlier this year we launched our “Succession Planning” series. Our first two columns started with the basics and raised questions you should be considering when making your succession plan. You can review these here: Part One (/news/to-transfer-or-not-to-transfer-when-is-the-right-time) and Pa..
-
Succession Planning for Farmers: Part Two - The ‘Arms Length’ Family Transfer
17-Jul-2018
Earlier this year, we launched the Part One of our series on Succession Planning. (/news/to-transfer-or-not-to-transfer-when-is-the-right-time) This issue, we shall explore the options you have if you would like to transfer your farming business all at once (as opposed to over time). ..
-
New Laws Restrict The Clearing of Farm Land
15-May-2018
There has been plenty of media on the new Vegetation and Management Laws that were passed by Parliament on 3 May this year. These new laws may have a great impact on many farmers’ ability to clear and manage their land in the future. The commencement date of these new laws is yet to be advi..
-
Succession Planning for Farmers: Part One - To transfer or not to transfer – When is the right time?
22-Mar-2018
As the saying goes, “if you fail to plan, then you plan to fail!” This too applies to succession planning for farmers For all the baby boomers out there, your retirement plans and succession planning may be (or perhaps should be) already in order. Some of you may have this on y..
-
New Laws Force Banks To Mediate With Queensland Farmers Before Foreclosing On Farmland
03-Jul-2017
The State Government has introduced new mediation laws in Queensland to provide an alternative solution for farmers when struggling to comply with their bank’s mortgage terms. This is a great alternative from having to engage in expensive and drawn out legal battles that could lead to their fina..
-
PPSA – Are you in the loop?
03-Jul-2017
The Personal Property Securities regime was introduced in January, 2012 and bought with it a number of complications and headaches for small businesses including cane farmers. Recent amendments to the PPS regime have reduced red tape and McKays sees this as a win in reducing the paper ..
-
Government Offers Grants for Farming Succession Advice
08-May-2017
Do you want half price legal and accounting services when preparing your Wills or transferring your farm onto your children? Succession and estate planning has been one of the biggest challenges faced by primary producers for generations. Passing on control of the family farming business an..
-
After the Cyclone – lost or misplaced livestock
11-Apr-2017
As the sun shines on another day, we have now all had an opportunity to assess the damage left behind by our unwelcome friend, Debbie! The crop damage is certainly one thing that is being felt hard by farmers. Another thing is those farmers that have also lost livestock, or found livestock ..
-
“Keeping it in the Family” - Expanded Duty Concession For The Transfer Of Family Farms
21-Feb-2017
There has been a further extension on the transfer duty (more commonly called ‘stamp duty’) concession for the transfer of family businesses of primary production that was released on 23 December, 2016. The great news is that this concession now covers Water Allocations! Before expl..
-
Don’t become the “Hunted” because of Pig Hunters!
08-Nov-2016
Don’t become the “Hunted” because of Pig Hunters! You only have to take a drive around Mackay to see the number of well equipped, off-road vehicles decked out with pig-hunting cages, to know that the sport is becoming increasingly popular. The problem is, there are a growing number..
-
Farmers affected by water rights changes in the Mackay Region
14-Oct-2016
Farmers affected by water rights changes in the Mackay Region Water… humans and animals cannot live without it; you certainly cannot grow crops without it; in fact, some University professors predict that World War III will be fought between countries over it! We are not qui..
-
Want To Use Your Super To Buy Your Cane Farm?
06-Sep-2016
Want To Use Your Super To Buy Your Cane Farm? Did you know that it may be possible for your superannuation to be used to purchase a cane farm well before retirement age? However, using a Self Managed Superannuation Fund (“SMSF”) to purchase farm land can be complex and it may not b..
Sign up to our newsletter.
Transfer Duty and Possible Concessions
Transfer duty (previously called stamp duty) is a tax imposed on transactions of real property or chattels. The State Government charges transfer duty based on the sale price of the property.–The contract of sale typically passes on the requirement to pay the duty to the buyer.The question of how much duty is payable depends on the sale price with the percentage scale increasing with the sale price.Depending on the nature of the transaction, certain concessions and exemptions may be available to you.
Click here to calculate transfer duty on your new farm or rural property.
For those transferring a farm or part of a farm to another family member, you may be eligible to apply for a concession to reduce your duty to Nil. To find out more follow this link:
https://www.qld.gov.au/housing/buying-owning-home/family-business-concession
To download the form to apply for the primary production concession to transfer a family business click on https://publications.qld.gov.au/dataset/8dea3cf8-a11b-4e99-9c1c-6ae4375321c1/resource/94fa58e3-dcfb-427c-b327-e4ef707b5cd6/download/form-d2.5v91july2017.pdf
Our contribution to the monthly Canegrowers Billet and our Free Rural Law Newsletters
Our experienced rural solicitors contribute a column each month to the Canegrowers Billet.Our column is focused on legal issues surrounding the farming sector and aims to inform farmers on the topical issues affecting them at the time.If you are a Canegrowers member, be sure to check out our column in each month’s Billet for some free legal info aimed at benefiting the cane farming industry.
You can find out more on joining Canegrowers by following the below link:
Canegrowers - http://www.canegrowers.com.au/
We also publish frequent Rural Law Newsletters which provide information to farmers on topical legal issues that farmers in our region should be aware of.If you would like to view any of our Rural Law Newsletters please follow this link //*//
What if your not an Australia Citizen or Permanent Resident?
If you are looking at buying a farm or rural property but aren’t an Australian Citizen or Permanent Resident, please click on the below link to find out if you are eligible to sign a contract now or whether you need to insert a special condition into the contract to make your contract subject to you obtaining approval from the Foreign Investments Board before locking yourself into the purchase.If you cannot find the information you are looking for on this link, please feel free to contact one of our friendly team who can assist you further.
Foreign Investors Board - http://firb.gov.au/
What if you have a Supplemented Water Allocation to transfer?
If you are looking at transferring a Supplemented Water Allocation to another person, you will need to download the necessary form from Sun Water and complete.If you are not an existing Sun Water customer, you will also have to complete a Customer Profile Details Form and also submit to Sun Water.If your transfer of the Water Allocation also involves other property, we recommend you contact one of our friendly team who can offer you further assistance to help you with the transaction so it is done correctly the first time.
Sunwater water allocation transfer information - http://www.sunwater.com.au/property-water-allocation-transfer-process/property-water-allocation-transfer-process
QRIDA Farm Management Grants
Some farmers may be eligible to apply for a grant from QRIDA (formerly called QRAA).If you would like more information on the grant, you can follow this link or alternatively, give one of our friendly team a call and we can explore this option with you.